Eduardo Acevedo Díaz

Eduardo Acevedo Díaz was a journalist and politician in Uruguay. He was born on April 20, 1851 in Villa de la Union.
He was extremely intelligent and eventually received a doctoral degree. He was an "idealistic young man [who] frequently used his talent to voice his strong political opinions in the newspapers and other periodicals of the day" (Eduardo Acevedo Diaz Biography). He was ultimately exiled in the 1870s to Buenos Aires, Argentina because of his radical partisan journalism.

After Uruguay had declared its independence, the country became divided into two separate political groups: the Blancos - mostly Catholic conservatives, and the Colorados - liberal federalists referred to as redshirts. Acevedo Díaz wrote a triology while in exile in an effort to inspire the Blancos to rise against the Colorados. In his books, he wrote of the "great old days of the Blancos" which became referred to as gauchismo. (Wikipedia)

His trilogy, Hymn of Hate, was made up of the novels Ismael (1888), Nativa (1890), and Grito de Gloria (1894). Soledad, published in 1894, is considered to be his best work, however.
In 1895 Acevedo Díaz was encouraged by some Blancos to return to Uruguay. Once he returned, Acevedo Díaz established El Nacional, a newspaper that soon became known for criticizing the Colorado President Idiarte Borda. Acevedo Díaz was not only a skillful writer, but also a powerful orator. It is believed that because of his speeches and support, Aparicio Saravia was elected as leader of the Blancos in 1896. During the political unrest during that period, President Borda was assassinated.
After multiple conflicts between political parties and leaders over power, a civil war broke out.
Acevedo Díaz died on June 18, 1921 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He has received two posthumous awards for his novels, he Buenos Aires Literary Prize in 1932 for Ramon Hazaa and the Argentine National Prize for Literature in 1940 for Cancha larga. (Eduardo Acevedo Diaz Biography).

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